An Ohio blogger known as “The Rooster” has been found guilty of telecommunications harassment after sending explicit Shrek memes to state Senator Jerry Cirino.
Cleveland News 5 reports that a Lake County jury took about 30 minutes to convict D.J. Byrnes. The case involved two texted images depicting Shrek holding his genitals.
Byrnes faced a maximum penalty of six months in jail and a $1,000 fine. Instead, the judge ordered him to pay court costs and imposed a $200 fine.
The messages followed Cirino’s unsuccessful attempt to become president of the Ohio Senate. The senator said there is an appropriate place for disagreement about policy and votes, but argued that a boundary had been crossed.
“There is a line to be drawn between normalized interaction on issues and policy and votes and et cetera, that allow for agreement and disagreement and lots of debate on a professional basis,” Cirino said. “There is a line that shouldn’t be crossed.”
The two-day trial included a free-speech defence from Byrnes. Prosecutors repeatedly focused on the condition Shrek was depicted in and the activity he appeared to be undertaking.
“Well. Shrek has made his debut on the screen today.”
Over the trial, prosecution has emphasized ~repeatedly~ the state that Shrek is in, and the activity he is allegedly engaged in. pic.twitter.com/EuLMgus6xH
— Morgan Trau, October 9, 2026
An image of the offending texts shown at trial was censored. It appeared to depict a naked Shrek alongside the message: “Good to see you finally made your final humiliation public, Young Mussolini! The Patriots Caucus sends its regards!!!!!!!!!!”
One defence witness was lobbyist Bobby Ina. During the proceedings, Cirino acknowledged that he had sent Ina a text message about the case—an action described in the report as improper. Ina testified that the message read: “You shared a voicemail with The Rooster? Seriously?”
Cirino later said he believed Byrnes was a friend and that the message was simply an expression of surprise, rather than an attempt to achieve a particular objective.
“Well, I thought he was a friend… I really didn’t have any objectives or anything that I was trying to accomplish; it was just an expression of my surprise,” Cirino said.
Aaron Terr, public advocacy director for the free-speech organisation FIRE, argued that Byrnes should appeal. In a post after the verdict came down, Terr said the First Amendment protects criticism of government officials, including criticism expressed in crude or vulgar language.
“The First Amendment protects the right to criticize government officials, even in crude or vulgar terms. If a single electronic communication that annoys or alarms the recipient can amount to criminal harassment, that’s bad news for a lot of social media users!”
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